KR101430622B1 - System and method for controlling wlan and bluetooth communications - Google Patents

Abstract

The present disclosure involves methods and systems for controlling WLAN and Bluetooth communications by allocating bandwidth to time blocks having a first segment with Bluetooth priority and a second segment with WLAN priority. Access to the wireless communication medium is signaled via an interface connecting WLAN and Bluetooth modules. The downlink traffic is modulated by signaling to the WLAN access point to buffer traffic for the first segment. The WLAN traffic may also be modulated by allowing reception of WLAN signals during the first segment and blocking transmission of WLAN signals. Also, while a high priority Bluetooth transmission is always preferably allowed, the low priority Bluetooth transmission may be limited for a second period, depending on the individual states of the WLAN and Bluetooth modules. A coexistence agent may be used to communicate relevant information between the WLAN module and the Bluetooth module.

Description

[0001] SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR CONTROLLING WLAN AND BLUETOOTH COMMUNICATIONS [0002]

This application is dependent upon Provisional Application Serial No. 61 / 328,848, filed April 28, 2010.

BACKGROUND 1. Technical Field The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communications, and more particularly to systems and methods for enhancing coexistence of WLAN and Bluetooth networks.

The recent surge in devices employing wireless communication technologies requires careful design to minimize interference and improve service quality. For example, Bluetooth and wireless local area network (WLAN) communication systems are often implemented within a single device.

Often, Bluetooth is used to connect and exchange information between mobile phones, computers, digital cameras, wireless headsets, speakers, keyboards, mice or other input peripherals, and like devices. Bluetooth allows the creation of a personal area network (PAN) between the master and up to seven slaves. For many Bluetooth applications, there is a need to ensure uninterrupted delivery of correctly ordered data packets.

For example, WLAN systems such as those defined by IEEE 802.11 protocols are typically associated with longer range communications and larger networks. WLAN communications provide relatively high data rates over relatively long distances and provide an easy interface to existing network infrastructures. This allows a significant portion of the characteristics of WLAN traffic to be less sensitive to packet order and delivery time problems.

WLAN communications operate on asynchronous protocols and access wireless media using Carrier Sense Multiple Access / Collision Avoidance (CSMA / CA) mechanisms, while Bluetooth communications use Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA) , WLAN communications and Bluetooth communications all share the 2.4 GHz industrial, scientific and medical device (ISM) band. As a result, interference may occur between the two communication systems. This problem is exacerbated by the physical collocation of the systems when the two communication systems are implemented in a single device. In fact, nowadays, each system is being carried on separate integrated circuits, and all of the two systems are changing to be integrated into a single chip. In addition, given differences in the typical characteristics of WLAN and Bluetooth communications, certain Bluetooth links need to be prioritized to ensure the required quality of service of the service.

Recognizing the potential for interference, various techniques have been employed to improve coexistence. The main strategy depends on the frequency hopping aspects of the Bluetooth devices. WLAN communication tends to park and is centered at one frequency and width in the spectrum when Bluetooth devices are "hopping " and before a switch to another channel, one of the 79 available 1MHz bands Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > 625 < / RTI > When interference is detected, adaptive frequency hopping (AFH) techniques allow Bluetooth devices to avoid Bluetooth channels overlapping WLAN channels.

AFH provides significant performance gains, but out-of-band Bluetooth signals can still affect WLAN signals, especially when systems are co-located. Typically, a WLAN system receives packets from relatively farther access points, thereby increasing the likelihood that the WLAN front end will be saturated by Bluetooth transmissions. Therefore, it is desirable to minimize or eliminate the amount of simultaneous WLAN and Bluetooth traffic. One strategy to achieve this goal is to rely on hardwired interfaces between the two systems to allow packet traffic arbitration (PTA) depending on the activity of each system. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, examples of PTA protocols include 2-wire, 3-wire, and 4-wire systems. Each of these protocols involves a Bluetooth device that communicates its status to a WLAN device and a WLAN device that mediates channel usage based on their input states and their own states. As a result, WLAN devices and Bluetooth devices use the 2.4 GHz band in time-share usage.

Depending on this implementation, the PTA protocols provide the WLAN system with information about the activity of the Bluetooth system, the relative priority level of Bluetooth information, and whether Bluetooth is transmitting on a restricted channel. Based on the information received via the PTA connection, the WLAN system signals via the PTA interface that the WLAN is active (Bluetooth communications during this period are disabled) or that the WLAN is inactive Signaling) to arbitrate the use of communication systems.

The use of PTA protocols further minimizes interference between WLAN systems and Bluetooth systems. However, even if the WLAN system has information about the presence and characteristics of ongoing Bluetooth communications, there are still coexisting problems with these protocols. In particular, PTA schemes are less efficient in protecting downlink traffic compared to uplink traffic.

For example, when there is a high priority Bluetooth activity, the hardware interrupts any current WLAN traffic and treats this WLAN traffic as an internal collision. Forcing this quality of service is necessary for many types of Bluetooth communications, as discussed above; However, this can significantly increase WLAN packet losses. The recognition of Bluetooth activity allows the WLAN system to minimize these effects on uplink traffic. However, such transmission failures cause the access point to revert to a lower transmission rate, which significantly degrades downlink throughput. In addition, because the access point does not have any knowledge that Bluetooth traffic causes transmission failures, the access point continues to retry the failed frame at the lower rate, takes more air-time, The probability of interference is remarkably added.

Therefore, there is a need for a system and method for implementing WLAN communication and Bluetooth communication that minimizes interference. For example, there is a need to provide a system and method configured to protect downlink WLAN traffic while still ensuring the quality of service required for Bluetooth communications. This disclosure is directed to these and other requirements.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the following and to be explicitly described and described above and in accordance with the aforementioned requirements, the disclosure provides a WLAN module with a hardware portion, a Bluetooth module with a hardware portion, and a packet traffic interface between the WLAN hardware portion and the Bluetooth hardware portion. Allocating bandwidth in a time block to a first segment and a second segment, allocating bandwidth in a time block to a first segment and a second segment for a Bluetooth communication for the first segment, Controlling the WLAN and Bluetooth communications, including prioritizing and prioritizing WLAN communications for a second segment, and signaling wireless access to the Bluetooth hardware portion via an interface during a first segment ≪ / RTI >

In an aspect, the method also includes modulating the WLAN communication by signaling to the WLAN access point to buffer the transmission during the first segment. Preferably, this involves transmitting a power saving signal. In another aspect, the method includes modulating a WLAN communication by allowing reception of WLAN signals and blocking transmission of WLAN signals during a first segment.

Preferably, the bandwidth allocation is based on information about the Bluetooth links or based on the status of the WLAN module and the Bluetooth module. Also, preferably, wireless access to the Bluetooth hardware portion is signaled during the second segment such that high priority Bluetooth transmissions are allowed. Depending on the individual states of the WLAN and Bluetooth modules, low priority Bluetooth transmissions are not allowed or allowed during the second period.

In another aspect, the method also includes communicating information between the software portion of the WLAN module and the software portion of the Bluetooth module through the coexistence agent. Preferably, this information relates to a profile that indicates the number and type of WLAN configuration states or Bluetooth links.

The disclosure also provides a method for controlling WLAN and Bluetooth communications comprising a WLAN module having a hardware and software portion, a Bluetooth module having a hardware portion, and a device having a packet traffic interface between the WLAN hardware portion and the Bluetooth hardware portion Wherein the WLAN software portion divides the available communication bandwidth into time blocks, allocates bandwidth within the time block to the first segment and the second segment, and prioritizes the Bluetooth communication for the first segment Assigns priority for WLAN communications to the second segment, and is configured to signal wireless access to the Bluetooth hardware portion via the interface during the first segment. Preferably, the WLAN software portion is further configured to signal the WLAN access point to buffer the transmission during the first segment, for example, to modulate the WLAN by transmitting a power saving signal. Also preferably, the WLAN software portion signals the WLAN to allocate bandwidth based on information about the Bluetooth links. The WLAN software portion may also allocate bandwidth based on the state of the WLAN module and the Bluetooth module. If desired, the WLAN software portion may also be configured to modulate the WLAN communication by allowing reception of WLAN signals for the first segment and blocking transmission of WLAN signals.

In another aspect, the WLAN software portion is further configured to signal wireless access to the Bluetooth hardware portion via the interface during the second segment, such that high priority Bluetooth transmissions are allowed. Depending on the respective states of the WLAN and Bluetooth modules, the WLAN software portion is further configured to signal wireless access during the second segment, such that low priority Bluetooth transmissions are not allowed or allowed.

In yet another aspect, the apparatus also includes a coexistence agent configured to communicate information between the software portion of the WLAN module and the software portion of the Bluetooth module. The preferably transmitted information includes information about the WLAN configuration status or information about the number and type of Bluetooth links.

Additional features and advantages will become apparent from the following and more particular description of preferred embodiments of the invention, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which like reference characters generally designate the same parts or elements Quot;
1 is a schematic illustration of an architecture of a combined Bluetooth and WLAN communication system, in accordance with the present invention.
2 is a representation of communication traffic that represents suppression of Bluetooth transmissions to protect WLAN downlink traffic, in accordance with the present invention.
Figure 3 is a schematic representation of one embodiment of successive allocations of time blocks by a bandwidth multiplexer, in accordance with the present invention.
Figure 4 is a schematic representation of a three-wire PTA protocol used in an embodiment of the present invention.

At the outset, it is to be understood that this disclosure is not limited to the specifically illustrated materials, architectures, routines, methods or structures, as they may of course vary. Thus, while a number of such options, similar or equivalent to those described herein may be utilized in the practice of embodiments of the present disclosure, preferred materials and methods are described herein.

It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments of the disclosure only, and is not intended to be limiting.

Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure pertains.

Further, all disclosures, patents, and patent applications cited herein, whether expressly or impliedly, are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.

Finally, as used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise .

There is a need to provide systems and methods that allow efficient coexistence of WLAN and Bluetooth communication systems within a single device, as described above. As shown in FIG. 1, an appropriate architecture 100 for coexistence solutions of the present disclosure is shown in a device having both WLAN and Bluetooth communication capabilities. In general, the WLAN module 102 includes a hardware portion 104 and a software portion 106. As will be appreciated, the software portion 106 includes driver software necessary for communication between the device and the hardware portion 104. The software portion 106 also includes a bandwidth multiplexer 108, which is described in detail below. Similarly, the Bluetooth module 110 includes a hardware portion 112 and a firmware portion 114 that are in communication with the Bluetooth stack software 116, which is conventionally residing on the device.

The packet traffic interface 118 connects the WLAN hardware portion 104 and the Bluetooth hardware portion 112. Additional details regarding the interface 118 are presented below, and in one embodiment, the interface 118 includes a three-wire PTA interface as is known in the art. The software-based coexistence agent 120 is configured to pass information between the software portion 106 of the WLAN and the Bluetooth stack 116.

Coexistence agent 120 is an application software module that communicates useful information between a WLAN system and a Bluetooth system. For example, Bluetooth profile information regarding the number and type of Bluetooth clients connected, start time and end time for Bluetooth scanning, and basic data rate (BDR) or extended data rate (EDR) The capabilities are communicated to the WLAN system. As described below, the bandwidth multiplexer 108 utilizes this information to establish time blocks and allocates usage between the WLAN system and the Bluetooth system. In addition, information about the WLAN configuration is communicated to the Bluetooth system. For example, the center frequency and channel width of a WLAN system may be adjusted by a Bluetooth system to help refine the AFH algorithm to help avoid Bluetooth transmissions on channels that are likely to interfere with the spectrum used by the WLAN Lt; / RTI > Additional details regarding the operation and implementation of the coexistence agents are set forth in co-pending U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 12 / 633,150, filed December 8, 2009, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety do.

Protecting the downlink traffic of the WLAN system can help improve coexistence of Bluetooth communication and WLAN communication. As discussed above, the WLAN access point has no knowledge of Bluetooth traffic, and will downgrade the transmission rate and correspondingly will consume more air-time if too many dropped packets are consumed. Thus, the present disclosure systems and methods may selectively suppress or transmit "Storming " Bluetooth transmissions during selected time periods to allow WLAN traffic to recover the physical layer rate and avoid downgrading by the access point quot; stomping " Also, uplink WLAN traffic is smoothed during these time periods.

Figure 2 schematically illustrates the effect of this function. Upper row 200 represents WLAN traffic with up arrows indicating uplink packets, down arrows indicating downlink traffic, and bi-directional arrows indicating both. Middle row 202 specifies the state of the WLAN activity. Lower row 204 specifies the status of Bluetooth activity. Thus, when Bluetooth activity is asserted and WLAN activity is de-asserted, no WLAN uplink packets are allowed, but downlink packets (groups 206, 208, 210 and 212) are received . When Bluetooth activity is de-asserted and WLAN activity is de-asserted, WLAN uplink packets 214 and 216 are allowed. WLAN uplink packets 214 and 216 are allowed. Finally, when the WLAN activity is asserted, all WLAN packets are allowed, and groups 218 and 220 and Bluetooth transmissions, groups 222 and 224, are stomped. As discussed below, all Bluetooth transmissions may be blocked during periods of WLAN activity, or low priority transmissions may allow high priority transmissions to continue to guarantee the desired quality of service for certain Bluetooth applications Lt; / RTI >

The operation shown in FIG. 2 is implemented by the systems and methods of this disclosure using a bandwidth multiplexer 108 to set up time blocks that allocate usage between WLAN communications and Bluetooth communications. The multiplexer 108 preferably establishes time blocks that are approximately 10 to 100 ms long and bandwidth is actively allocated between the Bluetooth and the WLAN during these time blocks. 3 shows the operation of the multiplexer 108, where the bandwidth 300 is divided into time blocks 302, two of which are shown. In this embodiment, the time blocks are 40 ms long. Within each block, the bandwidth is allocated between the segment 304 reserved for Bluetooth communications and the segment 306 reserved for WLAN communications. As will be appreciated, any portion of the segment 304 that has been left unused due to Bluetooth deactivation may be filled with WLAN traffic. In the illustrated embodiment, segment 304 represents up to 70% of the bandwidth 300 that will prioritize Bluetooth, while segment 306 represents that low-priority Bluetooth communications are required to protect WLAN downlink traffic, Represents 30% of the bandwidth 300 to be pinged. Although segments 304 and 306 are shown as being contiguous, those skilled in the art will recognize that these are merely representations of the relative percentage allocation of bandwidth. In practice, the access between WLAN traffic and Bluetooth traffic may be iteratively replicated during each of the time blocks 302, but the overall allocation will correspond to the desired percentage.

Preferably, the multiplexer 108 achieves a partially desired bandwidth allocation by controlling both downlink and uplink WLAN traffic. Multiplexer 108 modulates the downlink traffic by signaling the WLAN access point to buffer transmissions for the amount of time corresponding to the desired bandwidth allocation. In a preferred embodiment, the multiplexer 108 utilizes existing power saving protocols to achieve this signaling function. For example, multiplexer 108 sends a set power save (PS) bit to the access point that notifies that transmissions should be held and then resumes transmission by sending a clear PS bit. Unlike the conventional power saving mode, the WLAN hardware 104 is maintained in an awake state so that no delay is introduced when the access point is signaled to restart transmission.

Optionally, during a period of time when the access point maintains the transmission, the multiplexer 108 may send a signal to the access point requesting transmission of a single frame when there is no Bluetooth activity in conflict. In response, the multiplexer 108 limits the aggregate length of the WLAN transmission during the time block while allowing the scheduling of the WLAN packets when the Bluetooth traffic is not sufficient to consume the allocated bandwidth, Modulate traffic. It is also possible to use other legacy PSM (Power Save Mode), PS-Poll and other awake mode / power saving modes (CAM / PSM switching) or other unscheduled asynchronous power saving transmission (U- APSD) It should be noted that strategies may also be used.

As will be appreciated, it is desirable to adjust the bandwidth allocations performed by the multiplexer to reflect the status of the WLAN and Bluetooth links. With respect to WLAN systems, there are four main states: "connected state, disconnected state, scanning state and associated state ". Similarly, a Bluetooth system can be observed to have three main states: "on state, off state, and management state ". These potential states create twelve combinations of WLAN and Bluetooth states. If the WLAN is disconnected or the Bluetooth is off conditions, no coexistence is required, and accordingly the multiplexer 108 allocates the entire bandwidth. The WLAN association state is a relatively important process and it is therefore desirable to skew the bandwidth priority for the WLAN system during this state. On the other hand, the WLAN scanning status is less important, so a larger bandwidth can be allocated to the Bluetooth system. Additionally, the Bluetooth management state is also less important than the on state, so that a large amount of bandwidth can be allocated to the WLAN system during Bluetooth management. Table 1 illustrates an example of a suitable bandwidth allocation scheme based on WLAN and Bluetooth status, suitable for use with 40 ms time blocks.

For example, if Bluetooth is on, the relatively low priority WLAN scanning state preferably allows for greater bandwidth allocation to Bluetooth, e.g., allowing all high-priority Bluetooth transmissions, Bluetooth transmissions in the order are stomping at 40% of the time and do not stomp any Bluetooth transmissions in the remaining 60% of the time. For a relatively higher priority WLAN association state, all Bluetooth transmissions are strobed at 60% of the time and low priority Bluetooth transmissions are stomped at the remaining 40% of the time.

Finally, if the WLAN is connected and Bluetooth is on, it is desirable to allocate bandwidth based on the number of Bluetooth clients connected, their capabilities, and the type of service requested. This is shown in Table 1 as device dependent.

In general, there are two types of Bluetooth links, Synchronous Connection-Oriented (SCO) and Asynchronous Connection-Less (ACL) links. Extended SCO (eSCO) links are similar to SCO links, but they allow retransmission. A SCO link is a symmetric point-to-point link between a master and a single slave, where the SCO link is maintained by using reserved slots at regular intervals. Primarily, SCO links are used to carry voice information as in headset applications. The ACL link is a point-to-multipoint link between the master and its associated slaves.

As will be appreciated, certain types of Bluetooth communications require high quality of service. For example, successful transmission of audio information bidirectionally to headset applications or unidirectional to streaming music has a relatively low tolerance for packet loss or timing issues. Often, a combination of common features associated with a particular type of Bluetooth communication is materialized within the corresponding profile. For example, an advanced audio distribution profile (A2DP) is used to stream high quality audio, while a headset profile (HSP) and a hands-free profile (HFP) are used for communication with mobile phones. Thus, the size of the time blocks as well as the relative bandwidth allocations can be configured to optimize the types of current Bluetooth communications.

Preferably, some or all of the aforementioned factors are used by the multiplexer 108 to allocate bandwidth between the WLAN system and the Bluetooth system. For example, in one embodiment, a Bluetooth link using a BDR is given a greater bandwidth allocation than an EDR link. Also, preferably, the amount of bandwidth allocated to Bluetooth is limited to approximately 90%, but otherwise the difficulty in maintaining a viable WLAN link may be too great. In one embodiment, the number and type of Bluetooth connections are used to allocate bandwidth as shown in Table 2. [

As shown in FIG. 1, information about the transmission states of the WLAN module and the Bluetooth module is communicated by the interface 118. In a preferred embodiment, the interface 118 schematically illustrated in FIG. 4 conforms to a conventional three-wire PTA, or slot mode, protocol. The WLAN hardware 104 and the Bluetooth hardware 112 are linked by three wires. The Bluetooth module 110 signals activity and priority to the WLAN via the BT_Auto wire 402 and BT_ priority wire 404 while the WLAN module 102 uses the WLAN_Active wire 406 Thereby signaling WLAN activity.

The BT_Active wire 402 indicates whether Bluetooth communication is present, and the BT_Priority wire 404 indicates whether the communication is a high priority or a low priority. Optionally, the BT_Priority wire 404 is used to signal priority at the start of Bluetooth activity and is subsequently used to indicate whether the activity is a transmission or a reception.

Under the 3-wire PTA protocol, the process of determining which system grants access to the medium is performed by the WLAN module at the medium access control (MAC) layer. The result of this arbitration is signaled using the WLAN activation wire 406. Thus, the multiplexer 108 modulates the WLAN traffic to create the desired bandwidth allocation across the time block, while the PTA logic is used between the WLAN and BT on a packet-by-packet basis to meet the desired allocation Mediate access to the medium. For example, in a condition where both WLAN and Bluetooth are active, during segment 304, all Bluetooth traffic is allowed, any gaps are filled with WLAN traffic, and during segment 306, all low priority Bluetooth traffic Are blocked, high priority Bluetooth traffic is allowed, and WLAN traffic is allowed. The same techniques are applied to achieve the assignments discussed above during other possible WLAN and Bluetooth states, e.g., WLAN association and Bluetooth management.

Alternatively, the present disclosure may be applied to the 4-wire PTA protocol, and the fourth wire of the Bluetooth frequency used to indicate whether communication occurs on a restricted channel is grounded to zero. Additional details regarding implementations of PTA techniques can be found in the IEEE 802.15 protocols.

The presently preferred embodiments are described herein. However, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the principles of the present disclosure can be readily extended to other applications through appropriate modifications.

Claims (22)

A method for controlling wireless local area network (WLAN) and personal area network (PAN) communications,
Providing a WLAN module with a hardware portion, a PAN module with a hardware portion, and a device having a packet traffic interface between the WLAN hardware portion and the PAN hardware portion;
Dividing the available communication bandwidth into repeated time blocks of a defined duration;
Allocating a bandwidth in each time block to a first segment and a second segment;
Assigning priority to PAN communication for the first segment and prioritizing WLAN communication for the second segment; And
And signaling wireless access to the PAN hardware portion via the packet traffic interface during the first segment,
Wherein at least one of the WLAN communication and the PAN communication is allowed for at least one of the first segment and the second segment based at least in part on relative priorities of WLAN communication and PAN communication, / RTI > The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising modulating the WLAN communication by signaling to the WLAN access point to buffer the transmission during the first segment. 3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein signaling to the WLAN access point to buffer the transmission comprises transmitting a power saving signal. The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising modulating a WLAN communication by allowing reception of WLAN signals and blocking transmission of WLAN signals during the first segment. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the step of allocating bandwidth is based at least in part on information about PAN links. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the step of allocating bandwidth is based at least in part on states of the WLAN module and the PAN module. The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising signaling wireless access to the PAN hardware portion via the packet traffic interface during the second segment such that PAN transmissions of a first priority with a higher priority than the second priority PAN transmissions are allowed Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > WLAN < / RTI > and PAN communications. 8. The method of claim 7,
Wherein signaling wireless access to the PAN hardware portion via the packet traffic interface during the second segment does not allow the PAN transmissions of the second priority. 8. The method of claim 7,
And wherein signaling wireless access to the PAN hardware portion via the packet traffic interface during the second segment allows PAN transmissions of the second priority. The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising communicating information between a software portion of the WLAN module and a software portion of the PAN module through a coexistence agent. 11. The method of claim 10,
Wherein the information conveyed by the coexistence agent is selected from the group consisting of information on the WLAN configuration status and information on the number and type of PAN links. An apparatus for controlling wireless local area network (WLAN) and personal area network (PAN) communications,
A WLAN module with a hardware and software portion, a PAN module with a hardware portion, and a device having a packet traffic interface between the WLAN hardware portion and the PAN hardware portion,
Wherein the WLAN software portion is configured to divide the available communication bandwidth into repeating time blocks of a defined duration, allocate bandwidth within each time block to a first segment and a second segment, And prioritize WLAN communications for the second segment, and signaling wireless access to the PAN hardware portion via the packet traffic interface during the first segment,
Wherein at least one of the WLAN communication and the PAN communication is allowed for at least one of the first segment and the second segment based at least in part on relative priorities of WLAN communication and PAN communication, Lt; / RTI > 13. The method of claim 12,
Wherein the WLAN software portion is further configured to modulate a WLAN by signaling a WLAN access point to buffer transmissions during the first segment. 14. The method of claim 13,
Wherein the WLAN software portion signals to the WLAN access point to buffer the transmission by transmitting a power saving signal. 13. The method of claim 12,
Wherein the WLAN software portion is configured to modulate WLAN communications by allowing reception of WLAN signals and blocking transmission of WLAN signals during the first segment. 13. The method of claim 12,
Wherein the WLAN software portion allocates bandwidth based at least in part on information about PAN links. 13. The method of claim 12,
Wherein the WLAN software portion allocates bandwidth based at least in part on states of the WLAN module and the PAN module. 13. The method of claim 12,
Wherein the WLAN software portion is configured to provide wireless access to the PAN hardware portion over the packet traffic interface during the second segment such that PAN transmissions of a first priority having a higher priority than the second priority PAN transmissions are allowed ≪ / RTI > further comprising means for signaling the WLAN and PAN communications. 19. The method of claim 18,
Wherein the WLAN software portion is further configured to signal wireless access to the PAN hardware portion via the packet traffic interface during the second segment such that the second priority PAN transmissions are not allowed. Gt; 19. The method of claim 18,
Wherein the WLAN software portion is further configured to signal wireless access to the PAN hardware portion through the packet traffic interface during the second segment such that the second priority PAN transmissions are allowed, / RTI > 13. The method of claim 12,
Further comprising a coexistence agent configured to communicate information between the software portion of the WLAN module and the software portion of the PAN module. 22. The method of claim 21,
Wherein the information conveyed by the coexistence agent is selected from the group consisting of information on the WLAN configuration state and information on the number and type of PAN links.

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